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A free family friendly event to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of America’s entry into WW1 will be held at the King Jack Park Mining Days Event Center (703 Dawson Drive) in Webb City on Saturday, April 1st.

Displays will be open from 10:00AM to 12:00PM featuring a selection of WW1 uniforms, women’s fashion apparel, photos, and other historical artifacts of the WW1 era.

Local historians will speak on the changing world situation leading to President Woodrow Wilson’s address to the nation, and how the formal declaration of war by the United States Congress on April 6, 1917 impacted the local Joplin / Webb City community. Recent volunteer initiatives to refurbish WW1 Veteran grave site headstones will also be a topic in the program.

A special presentation on how the war forever changed women’s fashion apparel will begin at 11:30.

Program Schedule – April 1

10:00 – June 1914-April 1917, World Events and the European Battlefield Situation on April 6th 1917.

10:30 – President Wilson’s War Declaration

10:35 - Impact of War Declaration on the Joplin/Webb City Community

11:05 – WW1 Veterans Grave Site Preservation

11:30 - Women’s Clothing and Fashion Changes in the War Years

This commemorative event is co-sponsored by the Four State Chapter Military Officers Association of America and the Webb City Historical Society.

The Webb City Historical Society is pleased to present the upcoming program

“From Dirt to Rock to Cement: Early Roads in Southwest Missouri” presented by Michele Hansford.

The program will be held Saturday, April 23rd, 2016 at 2:00 p.m. at The Clubhouse, 115 N. Madison.

Michele is the recently retired Director of Powers Museum for over 32 years & currently Special Projects Volunteer focusing on upcoming 5th Annual Jefferson Highway Association conference April 29 & 30. She has held leadership positions on many boards including Missouri Humanities Council, Route 66 Association of Missouri, Ozarks Museums Association, Missouri Museums Association, Carthage Chamber of Commerce Tourism Committee, & current Maple Leaf Festival 50th Anniversary committee member. Michele holds a BA in American Studies from Anderson College (now University) and an MA in Historical Administration from Eastern Illinois University.

Anyone with images along the Jefferson Highway roads in this part of the state and/or with maps or other advertising memorabilia for either the Jefferson Highway, Ozark Trails or Ozark Playgrounds Association, are welcome to bring and share. Those with information on various alignments of the Jefferson Highway or Ozark Trails and documentation for same should bring that information, too.

After a short Annual Membership meeting, Cyndi Cogbill of Pawpaw Patch Productions presented an informative program on "Life on the Tall Grass Prairie", depicting the life of a hardworking woman settling the prairie with her husband. To see more, click on the photo tab above.

What Is Oral History? Oral history is the systematic collection of living people's testimony about their own experiences. Oral history depends upon human memory and the spoken word. The human life span puts boundaries on the subject matter that we collect with oral history. We can only go back one lifetime, so our limits move forward in time with each generation. Collecting oral history, we have a sense of catching and holding something valuable from the receding tide of the past.

Jeanne Sneddon, retired Carthage R-9 Teacher will be our guest speaker. Jeanne graduated from Utah State University with a degree in history. Returning to college in 1992, she obtained a degree in Secondary Education at Missouri Southern.

As an educator, teaching history at Carthage R-9 for 17 years, she assigned her students to interview a family member and conduct an oral history of the family. Many families now have a written and an audio recording of the lives of their loved ones. Every person has a story of worth for future generations. Jeanne is excited to share with you tips and steps to help you complete an oral history of YOUR family!

New Board Members were elected at the Annual Membership meeting and Jennifer James presented an interesting account of the history of the Webb City School District. She provided pictures of most of the early school buildings, and explained how each was consolidated into the present district.